Vera Mirkovic and Jennie Näss are a mother-daughter team who, after pursuing their own business careers, joined forces in 2005 to create elegant cookies for people who appreciate European traditions and hand detailing that go into them. Handcrafted in suburban Chicago, the butter cookies, made with imagination and the finest ingredients, can be delivered anywhere.

Nicely gift-boxed, the cookies make a special gift for people who recognize and appreciate something distinctively different. And of course, don’t hesitate to buy a few boxes as a treat for yourself. Read the full review on TheNibble.com.

The question is: How much coffee do you have to drink to get the benefits? The answer: a lot. That’s why we said it’s “good for guzzlers.” Here are some examples:

-A cup of Spava Clarity provides 20mg of ginkgo biloba and 25mg of white tea extract. One of the country’s most prominent neurologists, who specializes in memory, prescribes 120 mg of ginkgo twice a day for normal maintenance of clarity.

-Spava Flexibility contains 30mg of chondroitin sulfate, and 20mg of MSM. Anyone who is concerned with prophylaxis—much less healing and pain—is taking a minimum of 500mg of chondroitin sulfate daily, and similar amounts of glucosamine sulfate. So, this is a drop in the bucket.

-Spava Immunity has 25mg of rosehips per cup, which contain vitamin C, plus 35mg of echinacea; but anyone who takes vitamin C pills for immunity aims for 500mg a day.

However, little bits can add up, and for people who don’t like to swallow pills, 20mg or 30mg is better than nothing at all. While the coffee won’t pass muster with the coffee connoisseur klatsch, it tastes as good as what most people enjoy. And the attractive package is a nice idea. So, if all this makes it worth it to you to pay double the amount for a bag…tear one open and start brewing!

Read the full review of Spava Fortified Coffee and find more about organic, natural & wellness foods in the Nutrinibbles section of THE NIBBLE online magazine.

We first discovered Mercer’s two years ago. This upstate New York dairy had a standout Port ice cream and three other flavors of wine ice cream that were a distant second. A lot of work has gone into making all four flavors medalists at THE NIBBLE Ice Cream Olympics, and two new flavors are about to join them.

All of the flavors are an ice cream and wine lover’s dream. In Ala Port, Cherry Merlot, Chocolate Cabernet, Peach White Zinfandel, Red Raspberry Chardonnay and Royal White Riesling, these seductive frozen dreams rock. As they soften in your dish, they evolve into an ice cream cocktail. No one we know is satisfied with just one serving, so here’s our advice: Don’t show restraint; order two of everything and call over your nearest and dearest to celebrate. Scoop up the details in the full review. And for a great line of wine sorbets, read our review of Wine Cellar Sorbets, another Top Pick Of The Week.

*The phrase “to pass muster,” meaning to be acceptable or satisfactory, comes from the military. Troops are gathered in a group to show officers that they are acceptably dressed and equipped. Muster refers to the gathering, so it is especially appropriate for our gathering of barbecue sauces.

Recognizing that preferences vary, we included some sauces this year that might not have passed our “moderate sugar standard” in previous years. You’ll see from our comments what we thought was good, and why people who look for sweeter foods should enjoy them.

–Big John’s Ol West BBQ & Dippin Sauce

–Blender’s Barbeque Sauce, Marinade & Dip

–Buz & Ned’s Real Barbecue Sauce

–One Drop Gourmet BBQ Sauce

–Smoke Master BBQ Sauce

–Taste Of Tassleberry Strawberry BBQ Sauce

Read the full review on TheNibble.com.

We were sad when one of our favorite artisan producers in Massachusetts discontinued the delicious stroopwafel from its line. The complex yet homey cookies just weren’t moving as fast as other items, they said. We can only conclude that it’s because most Americans have never heard of a stroopwafel, and don’t know how good it is. Whether from a gourmet producer or the supermarket, it’s not easy to find a stroopwafel in this country.

So we were thrilled when, at a recent restaurant trade show in New York City, we came across Dutch Moon Cookies. New Yorker Tracey Denton and her Dutch husband Eelco Keij, created this Dutch treat for Americans. Succulent and cinnamony, it’s a most delicious introduction to the stroopwafel.

Read the full review on TheNibble.com.